Machine for printing upon bottles and similar bodies



A1181 1955 A. T. RS551 3,269,305

MACHINE FOR PRINTING UPON BOTTLES AND SIMILAR BODIES Filed March 18, 1965 T5 Sheets-Sheet 1 1N VENTOR.

. ANTHONY i ROSS! M M W) F a. 3

A. T. ROSS] Aug. 30, 1966 MACHINE FOR PRINTING UPON BOTTLES AND SIMILAR BODIES I5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 18, i965 III! III I III HININHI I L ll INVENTOR. AMTNGNY 7'. R055! ATTORNEK A. T. ROSSI Aug. 30, 1966 MACHINE FOR PRINTING UPON BOTTLES AND SIMILAR BODIES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 18, 1965 INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,269,305 MACHINE FUR PRINTING UPON BOTTLES AND SIMILAR BODIES Anthony T. Rossi, PM. Box 338, Bradenton, Fla. Filed Mar. 18, 1965, Ser. No. 440,694 4 Claims. (Cl. 101-35) My invention relates to a machine for applying printed surface decorations and letterings to bottles or other bodies which have at least one surface portion capable to be printed upon. Such bodies may be of any suitable material for example glass, plastic or metal. Any stencil printing means, particularly however silk screen printing means may be used.

The principal object of my invent-ion is to provide an easily serviceable machine for continuous, rapid and automatic printing on said articles. The invention in its preferred embodiment provides a rotating horizontal circular table on which a plurality of evenly spaced screen printing means is mounted in circular arrangement. Each screen printing means comprises a vertical screen with screen frame facing outwardly from said table and a squeegee vertically displaceable along the screen. The table is constantly rotated and as bodies to be printed upon are successively transferred onto the table in front of the screen frames and held in working position, the squeegee is moved upward along the screen and printing is applied to the bodies in a constant motion during the rotation of the table; thereafter, the printed upon bodies are released and discharged from the table onto a continuously moving exist conveyor. Other objects of my invention will be apparent from the following specification when read with the accompanying drawing which by way of example illustrates one embodiment of my new machine.

In the drawing FIG. 1 is a top view of the machine, partly in section susbtantially along lines 11 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a side view, partly in section along line 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view, partly in section of the holding mechanism for the body to be printed upon and of the printing means, and

FIGS. 4 and 5 are cross sectional views of a squeegee assembly in inoperative and in operative position, respectively.

In all figures of the drawing the same reference numerals indicate the same elements and the shown arrows the directions of movements.

Bottles 11 or other bodies to be printed upon are carried in upstanding position by a conveyor belt 12 towards and from the printing machine and prior to entering the machine are evenly spaced by a timing screw 13 which is rotated by the bevel gearing 14 driven by shaft 15. The momentarily most advanced bottle in the row constantly approaching the machine is seized by an entrance spider means comprising a pair of superposed rotating star discs or wheels 16 and is transferred to a continuously rotating horizontal, circular turntable 17 upon which the thus transferred bottles are placed in even spacing to be carried in a circular path to an exist spider means 18 which returns one bottle after the other to the conveyor belt :12. It will be well understood that the forward speed of the conveyor belt and the rotational speeds of the spider means and of the turntable have to be properly correlated to insure a smooth transfer of the bottles.

The turntable 17 is mounted on the hollow central shaft 19 which is rotated by the hull gear 20 driven by motor M over the variable speed drive 21, speed reducer 22 and gear 23. Said hull gear also driven over gear 24 and chain drive 25 the shaft 26 of the entrance spider means and from there the shaft 15 of the bevel gearing 14. The

exit spider means 18 is driven in the same manner by the chain drive 25'.

A plurality of evenly spaced radial arms 27 is firmly mounted on rotating central shaft 19 and rotates therewith above and together with the turntable 17. The spacing of the arms 27 conforms to the spacing of the bottles 1'1 which have been transferred to and are resting upon the turntable. The cooperation of the entrance spider means 16 and of the turntable 17 is so coordinated that each transferred bottle comes to rest under one of said radial arms 27 with its surface to be printed upon facing the screen.

A two-armed clamping lever 28, 29 is jointed to the end of each radial arm 27 and can be tilted by a spring loaded push rod 30 as shown in FIG. 2 from an idle position A into the acting position B in which it bears with its cushion 29 against the bottle 11 to press the same against a silk screen frame 31 leaving a small spacing d between the bottle and the silk screen held in the frame.

Each push rod 30 is actuated by a block 32 slidably mounted on one arm 27. This slide block 32 when moved outwardly presses with its projection 33 against the compression spring 34 held on push rod 30 by retaining member 35 and is provided with a follower 36 actuated by a stationary cam 37 hereinafter referred to as clamping lever cam. This cam 37 causes the clamping lever to tilt from the idle position A into the active position B immediately or soon after the bottle has been placed on the turntable 17 in front of one screen frame and to remain in such acting position (see FIG. 1) substantially until the bottle 11 is seized by the exit spider means 18 to be returned to the conveyor belt 12.

Each of a plurality of exchangeable silk screens 38 is mounted in an upstanding frame 31 facing outwardly from the turntable 17 under one of said radial arms 27 and the printing is effected by an elastic squeegee blade 39 which is held by the squeegee plate 40 and controls, i.e. opens and closes, a cavity 41 therein. This cavity is connected by a flexible supply line 42 to a pressure paint reservoir 43 which is fed by a paint pump 44 from a paint bucket 45.

Each screen frame 31 rests under one arm 27 on a spring loaded slide 46 mounted on the turntable '17 for limited displacement in radial direction thereof. When the bottle 11 influenced by the clamping lever 28, 29 pushes the screen frame 31 inwardly into the position shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 the silk screen 38 is wedged between the bottle and the squeegee blade 39 depressing the same and allowing paint to fiow from cavity 4 1. Simultaneously the associated squeegee block 47 is caused to start an upward sliding movement on its vertical guide post 48 into the position shown in FIG. 3 in dotted lines so that the squeegee blade 39 wipes paint escaping from cavity 41 through the silk screen 38 onto the bottle 11.

v This upward movement of the slide block 47 its substantially circular movement and its following downward movement into the initial position is effected by the follower 49 mounted thereupon and moving in the stationary endless cam way 50 formed by the pair of guide rods 51 firmly held in the stationary support 51'. While the squeegee block 47 moves upward the squeegee blade 39 wipes paint leaving the cavity 41 through the silk screen onto the bottle. After the squeegee blade 39 is raised as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 3 to effect the printing and the turning table 17 has moved the bottle for seizure by the exit spider means 18, the bottle is unclamped by the action of the clamping lever cam 37 and the squeegee block 4-7 is returned to its lowermost initial position shown in full lines in FIG. 3 by the action of the cam way 50 preparing the squeegee for the next printing cycle. The printed upon bottle released by the clamping lever and seized by the exit spider means 18 is returned to the conveyor belt 12. Excess paint from the squeegee blade 39 is drained from the screen frame 31 through the tube 51 into an excess pa-int pan 52 for possible re-use.

Summarizing the printing operation may be as follows:

Each bottle '11 after being transferred upon the turntable 17 into operating position below one of the equally spaced radial arms 27 and in front of one of the associated upstanding silk screen frames 31 is pressed against the screen and its frame by the associated clamping lever 28-29 actuated by the cam 37 and push rod 30 as described above. This causes the screen frame 31 resting on the spring loaded slide 46 to slightly retract and the squeegee blade 39 presses the silk screen 38 against the bottle surface to be printed upon as shown in FIG. 5. At the same time the squeegee block 47 is being lifted by its follower 49 moving in the stationary cam way 50 thereby effecting the printing operation and it continues to move in the endless and substantially circular cam way 50 in such lifted position into proximity of the exit spider means 18. At this time the clamping lever cam 37 causes the clamping levers 28 29 to release the printed upon bottle which is seized by said exit spider means and transferred to the conveyor belt 12. Thereupon, the squeegee block 47 and the squeegee assembly 39, 4% are returned by the cam way 50 into their initial lowest position (FIG. 3), the clamping lever 28-29 is brought again into operative position by its cam 37 and the printing operation is continuously repeated on bottles as they are transferred from the conveyor belt 12 into Working position on the turntable 17.

While the shown and described embodiment is fitted for printing on a plane surface of bottles or other bodies, it is evident that my machine can be used for printing on curved, for example, cylindrical surfaces. In such case the silk screen and the squeegee have of course to be accordingly shaped as known in the art.

Although only one specific embodiment of my invention has been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of my invent-ion, it will be well understood that the same may be otherwise en1 bodied without departing from such principles and Without avoiding my appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A silk screen decorating machine comprising a horidescribed zontal, substantially circular table rotatable about a vertical axis; means rotating the table; a plurality of decorating stations evenly spaced on the table in circular arrangement; each decorating station including an upstanding decorating screen with frame facing outwardly from the table, a vertically reciprocable squeegee, and stationary first cam means effecting an upward printing movement and a following free downward return movement of the squeegee while the table rotates; conveying means carrying a row of equally spaced bodies to be decorated upon a vertical surface toward the table and decorated bodies away from the table; transferring means moving incoming bodies successively from said conveying means to the table in front of succeeding decorating screens with the surface to be decorated facing the screen; a series of clamping means each associated with a decorating station to hold the body in position while the table rotates; second stationary cam means operating said clamping means namely pressing the body against the screen frame while the squeegee moves upward and freeing the decorated body before the same is retransferred to the conveying means.

2. A silk screen decorating machine according to claim 1 wherein the screen frame rests resiliently upon the table in radial direction thereof.

3. A silk screen decorating machine according to claim 1 wherein the clam-ping means comprises a series of radial arms rotating with the table, each arm associated with one decorating station, a slide block on each radial arm actuated by said second cam means, and a double-armed clamping lever hinged to the outer end of the radial arm.

4. A silk screen decorating machine according to claim 3 comprising a vertical guide post extending between each radial arm and the table and a squeegee block slidable thereupon.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,162,317 6/1939 Rez. 2,484,671 10/1949 Bauman 101-124 X 2,601,700 7/1952 Pinsky et a1. 2,885,957 5/1959 Hansen 10l124 ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

WILLIAM MCCARTHY, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A SILK SCREEN DECORATING MACHINE COMPRISING A HORIZONTAL, SUBSTANTIALLY CIRCULAR TABLE ROTATABLE ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS; MEANS ROTATING THE TABLE; A PLURALITY OF DECORATING STATIONS EVENLY SPACED ON THE TABLE IN CIRCULAR ARRANGEMENT; EACH DECORATING STATION INCLUDING AN UPSTANDING DECORATING SCREEN WITH FRAME FACING OUTWARDLY FROM THE TABLE, A VERTICALLY RECIPROCABLE SQUEEGEE, AND STATIOINARY FIRST CAM MEANS EFFECTING AN UPWARD PRINTING MOVEMENT AND A FOLLOWING FREE DOWNWARD RETURN MOVEMENT OF THE SQUEEGEE WHILE THE TABLES ROTATES; CONVEYING MEANS CARRYING A ROW OF EQUALLY SPACED BODIES TO BE DECORATED BODIES A VERTICAL SURFACE TOWARD THE TABLE AND DECORATED BODIES AWAY FROM THE TABLE; TRANSFERRING MEANS MOVING INCOMING BODIES SUCCESSIVELY FROM SAID CONVEYING MEANS TO THE TABLE IN FRONT OF SUCCEEDING DECORATING SCREENS WITH THE SURFACE TO BE DECORATED FACING THE SCREEN; A SERIES OF CLAMPING MEANS EACH ASSOCIATED WITH A DECORATING STATION TO HOLD THE BODY IN POSITION WHILE THE TABLE ROTATES; SECOND STATIONARY CAM MEANS OPERATING SAID CLAMPING MEANS NAMELY PRESSING THE BODY AGAINST THE SCREEN FRAME WHILE THE SQUEEGEE MOVES UPWARD AND FREEING THE DECORATED BODY BEFORE THE SAME IS RETRANSFERRED TO THE CONVEYING MEANS. 